Human, All Too Human

Human, All Too Human: A Book for Free Spirits is a book by 19th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, originally published in 1878. A second part, Assorted Opinions and Maxims (Vermischte Meinungen und Sprüche), was published in 1879, and a third part, The Wanderer and his Shadow (Der Wanderer und sein Schatten), followed in 1880.

The book is Nietzsche's first in the aphoristic style that would come to dominate his writings, discussing a variety of concepts in short paragraphs or sayings. Reflecting an admiration of Voltaire as a free thinker, but also a break in his friendship with composer Richard Wagner two years earlier, Nietzsche dedicated the original 1878 edition of Human, All Too Human “to the memory of Voltaire on the celebration of the anniversary of his death, May 30, 1778.” Instead of a preface, the first part originally included a quotation from Descartes’ Discourse on the Method. Nietzsche later republished all three parts as a two-volume edition in 1886, adding a preface to each volume, and removing the Descartes quote as well as the dedication to Voltaire.

Contents

Esteeming humble truths. It is the sign of a higher culture to esteem more highly the little, humble truths, those discovered by a strict method, rather than the gladdening and dazzling errors that originate in metaphysical and artistic ages and men. At first, one has scorn on his lips for humble truths [-] But truths that are hard won, certain, enduring, and therefore still of consequence for all further knowledge are the higher;...

Translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 3

Here lies the antagonism between the individual regions of science and philosophy. The latter wants, as art does, to bestow on life and action the greatest possible profundity and significance; in the former one seeks knowledge and nothing further -- and does in fact acquire it.

Everyone knows from experience how fast the dreamer can incorporate into his dream a loud sound he hears, bell ringing, for example, or cannon fire, how he can explain it after the fact from his dream, so that he believes he is experiencing first the occasioning factors, and then that sound.

Dream-thought is so easy for us now because, during mankind's immense periods of development, we have been so well drilled in just this form of fantastic and cheap explanation from the first, best idea. In this way dreaming is recuperation for a brain which must satisfy by day the stricter demands made on thought by higher culture.

One crucial disadvantage about the end of metaphysical views is that the individual looks his own short life span too squarely in the eye and feels no strong incentive to build on enduring institutions, designed for the ages.

Error has made man so deep, delicate, inventive as to bring forth such blossoms as religion and arts. Pure knowledge would never have been capable of it.

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 29

Often enough, and always with great consternation, people have told me that there is something distinctive in all my writings, from The Birth of Tragedy to the most recently published Prologue to a Philosophy of the Future. All of them, I have been told, contains snares and nets for careless birds, and almost , unperceived challenge to reverse one's habitual estimations esteemed habits. 'What's that? Everything is only-human, all to human?

Aphorism 1, Preface

Bison Books Edition, translated by Marion Faber, with Stephen Lehmann

Enough, I am still alive; and life has not been devised by morality: it wants deception, it lives on deception - but wouldn't you know it?

Aphorism 1, Preface

Bison Books Edition, translated by Marion Faber, with Stephen Lehmann

It is still a long way from this morbid isolation, from the desert of these experimental years, to that enormous, overflowing certainty and health which cannot do without even illness itself, as an instrument and fishhook of knowledge; to that mature freedom of the spirit which is fully as much self-mastery and discipline of the heart, and which permits paths to many opposing ways of thought. It is a long way to inner spaciousness and cosseting of a superabundance which precludes the danger and the sprit might lose itself on its own paths and fall in love and stay put, intoxicated, in some nook; a long way to that excess of vivid healing, reproducing, reviving power, the very sign of great health, an excess that gives free spirit the dangerous privilege of being permitted to live experimentally.

Aphorism 6, Preface

Bison Books Edition, translated by Marion Faber, with Stephen Lehmann

Esteeming Humble Truths. It is the sign of a higher culture to esteem more highly the little, humble truths, those discovered by a strict method, rather than the gladdening and dazzling error that originate in metaphysical and artistic ages and men. At first, one has scorn on his lips for humble truths, as if they could offer no match for the others: they stand so modest, simple, sober, even apparently discouraging, while the other truths are so beautiful, splendid, enchanting, or even enrapturing. But truths that are hard won, certain, enduring, and therefore still of consequence for all further knowledge are teh higher; to keep to them i many and shows bravery, simplicity, restraint. Eventually, not only the individual, but all mankind will be elevated to this manliness when men finally grow accustomed to the greater esteem for durable, lasting knowledge and have lost all belief in sinpiration and a seemingly miraculous communication of truths.

Without the errors inherent in the postulates of morality, man would have remained an animal. But as it is he has taken himself to be something higher and has imposed stricter laws upon himself. He therefore has a hatred of those stages of man that remain closer to the animal state.

We must think of men who are cruel today as stages of earlier cultures, which have been left over ... They show us what we all were, and frighten us. But they themselves are as little responsible as a piece of granite for being granite.

The powerful man feels gratitude for the following reason: through his good deed, his benefactor has, as it were, violated the powerful man's sphere and penetrated it. Now through his act of gratitude the powerful man requites himself by violating the sphere of the benefactor. It is a milder form of revenge.

The pity that the spectators then express consoles the weak and suffering, inasmuch as they see that, despite all their weakness, they still have at least one power: the power to hurt.

Aphorism 50

Note: The latter quote is part of a counter to the former.

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

But will there be many people honest enough to admit that it is a pleasure to inflict pain? That not infrequently one amuses himself (and well) by offending other men (at least in his thoughts) and by shooting pellets of petty malice at them? Most people are too dishonest, and a few men are too good, to know anything about this source of shame. So they may try to deny that Prosper Merimée is right when he says, Sachez aussi qu'il n'y a rien de plus commun que de faire le mal pour le plaisir de le faire. [Know that nothing is more common than to do harm for the pleasure of doing it] [Image: Prosper Merimee]Aphorism 50

One common false conclusion is that because someone is truthful and upright towards us he is speaking the truth.

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 53

Isn't it clear that, in all these cases [of selflessness] man is loving something of himself, a thought, a longing, an offspring, more than something else of himself, that he is thus dividing up his being and sacrificing one part for the other?

One can promise actions, but not feelings, for the latter are involuntary. He who promises to love forever or hate forever or be forever faithful to someone is promising something that is not in his power.

[P]erhaps the great majority of men find it necessary, in order to maintain their self respect and a certain effectiveness in their actions, to lower and belittle the image they form of everyone they know.

At first, he gave offense, then he awoke suspicion, and at length he was virtually ostracized and banished. Finally, justice remembered this depraved creature on occasions when it otherwise averted or winked its eye

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 65

In truth, [hope] is the most evil of evils because it prolongs man's torment.

We praise or find fault, depending on which of the two provides more opportunity for our powers of judgement to shine.

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 86

Wer sich selbst erniedrigt, will erhoehet werden.

He who humbleth himself wants to be exalted.

translated by Marion Faber and Stephen Lehmann

Aphorism 87

Notes: 'improvement' of Luke 18:14 - He who humbleth himself shall be exalted.

[T]he initial character of justice is barter.

Aphorism 92

Unusquisque tantum juris habet, quantum potentia valere creditur - Each has as much right as his power is assessed to be.

Aphorism 93

Note: based on a quote by Spinoza; Unusquisque tantum juris habet, quantum potentia valet - Each has as much right as his power is worth.

[W]e all still suffer from too slight a regard for our own personal needs; it has been poorly developed.

Aphorism 95

Socrates and Plato were right: whatever man does, he always acts for the good; that is, in a way which seems to him good (useful) according to the degree of his intellect, the prevailing measure of his rationality.

Aphorism 102

Is Schadenfreude devilish ... Is the knowledge, then, that another person is suffering because of us supposed to make immoral the same thing about which we would otherwise feel no responsibility?

Aphorism 103

If one does not know how painful an action is, it cannot be malicious; thus the child is not malicious or evil to an animal: he examines and destroys it like a toy.

No life without pleasure, the struggle for pleasure is the struggle for life.

Aphorism 104

Between good and evil actions there is no difference in type; at most a difference in degree. Good actions are sublimated evil actions; evil actions are good actions become coarse and stupid.

The thinking of men who believe in magic and miracles is bent on imposing a law on nature; and in short, religious worship is the result of this thinking.

Aphorism 111

When we hear the old bells ringing out on a Sunday morning, we ask ourselves: can it be possible? This is for a Jew, crucified two thousand years ago, who said he was the son of God. The proof for such a claim is wanting.

Aphorism 113

Christianity came into being in order to lighten the heart; but now it has to burden the heart first, in order to be able to lighten it afterwards. Consequently it will perish.

Aphorism 119

Without blind disciples, no man or his work has ever gained great influence.

Aphorism 122

There is not enough love and kindness in the world to permit us to give any of it away to imaginary beings.

Aphorism 129

In each ascetic morality, man prays to one part of himself as a god and also finds it necessary to diabolify the rest.

What do we long for when we see beauty? To be beautiful. We think much happiness must be connected with it. But that is an error.

Aphorism 149

Art renders the sight of life bearable by laying over it the gauze of impure thinking.

Aphorism 151

Every great phenomenon is followed by degeneration, particularly in the realm of art. The model of the great man stimulates vainer natures to imitate him outwardly or to surpass him; in addition, all great talents have the fateful quantity of stifling many weaker forces and seeds, and seem to devastate the nature around them. The most fortunate instance in the development of an art is when several geniuses reciprocally keep each other in check; in this kind of a struggle, weaker and gentler natures are generally also allowed air and light.

Aphorism 158

Just as youth and childhood have value in and of themselves ... so too do unfinished thoughts have their own value.

Aphorism 207

Every writer is surprised anew when a book, as soon as it has been separated from him, begins to take on a life of its own ... it goes about finding its readers, kindles life, pleases, horrifies, fathers new works, becomes the soul of others' resolutions and behaviour. In short, it lives like a being fitted out with a mind and soul—yet it is nevertheless not human.

When entering a marriage, one should ask the question: do you think you will be able to have good conversations with this woman right into old age? Everything else in marriage is transitory, but most of the time in interaction is spent in conversation.

After a personal disagreement and quarrel between a woman and a man, the one party suffers most at the thought of having hurt the other; while that other party suffers most at the thought of not having hurt the first enough; for which reason it tries by tears, sobs, and contorted features, to weigh down the other person's heart, even afterwards.